Prof. Dr. Christine Bauhardt | Brain City Berlin

©Paulus Ponizak

18.12.2019
Prof. Dr. Christine Bauhardt | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin

Brain City Berlin

Brain City Ambassador, Professor Dr. Christine Bauhardt heads the Gender and Globalisation Department in the Life Sciences faculty at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. In her research, she looks at aspects of environmental policy, agricultural and food policy, and infrastructure policy from a critical gender perspective.

Berlin has been the centre of Dr. Christine Bauhardt's life for 20 years. "Like many, I came to Berlin for work; I didn't choose the city," says the academic, head of the Gender and Globalisation Department in the Life Sciences faculty at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.

1999 turned out to be a career-defining year for Christine Bauhardt: she was invited to the Technische Universität Berlin to develop and do a trial run of a chair in women's and gender research in spatial and environmental planning. "I had previously worked as a research assistant at the Faculty of Spatial Planning at the University of Dortmund." Her work was intended to lay the groundwork for a future department, but the project ultimately failed, despite her success in getting it up and running. "Thanks to the Senate's austerity constraints," as she puts it today. "I then concentrated on completing my qualifying dissertation and was fortunate to be appointed to the Gender and Globalisation professorship at HU Berlin in 2005."

Berlin needs critical spirits to continue to remain the attractive and vibrant city it has been. The university is just one place among many that make this city exciting and interesting.

Christine Bauhardt's research focus is in the areas of environmental policy, agricultural and food policy, and infrastructure policy, all viewed from a critical gender perspective. "My research on alternative economies also falls into the area of environmental policy. I start with an analysis of the care economy, i.e. taking care and responsibility for people who are not yet able to take care of themselves, either temporarily or permanently. Care activities take place on both a paid and unpaid basis, but are at the core of any economic organisation in society," she says. Her team at the department also takes this perspective to analyse agricultural and food policies: care as the principle of a sustainable nutritional system from production to shopping and meal preparation. "In the field of infrastructure policies, I'm particularly interested in transport/mobility and water," says the professor.

Christine Bauhardt still enjoys living in Berlin. "Because it is a big city with so different social groups, the cultural offerings are varied and affordable for most people." Another big advantage of Brain City Berlin is the close-knit scientific networking, according to Christine Bauhardt. She actively uses this network herself. “Currently, for example, via the Berlin University Alliance. In principle, the proximity to political decision-makers here in Berlin can also play an important role in lobbying for policies. However, I sense quite a distance between politics and science."

And what does the life scientist advise young researchers who are new to Berlin? “In any case, they should take the chance to get involved intensively in the city's public sphere. Berlin needs critical spirits to continue to remain the attractive and vibrant city it has been. The university is just one place among many that make this city exciting and interesting."